Yule's Eve
by AnneLaurant
Summary: Aldarn goes shopping for a Christmas... err, Yuletide gift for Caleb. (Contains loads of worldbuilding within the narrative, including religion and tradition.) Prequel to The Day of Hearts and Roses.


The Earthlings were truly peculiar, but Aldarn reckoned Caleb adored the culture just as much as the (in)famous Basiliadean warrior Orube did. Day after day, Caleb and Orube would stroll around town, awed at the Earthling creations, the many blinking lights and fake pine leaves and cones, the elegant lanterns, and so on and so forth. It wasn't as if they, Meridiniates, didn't celebrate something similar, but the Earthlings were about ten times as excited and as extravagant.

Aldarn had to admit, they were truly very spectacular. But even more spectacular was the glow in Caleb's eyes.

Aldarn remembered their childhood in those gleeful eyes. It was as if Heatherfield's Yuletide season had entered those beautiful navy eyes and happiness sparkled from within.

And so here he was in a mall, buying the essentials of the Yuletide season, led around by a very grumpy Lord Cedric.

"They don't have it in red," the naga groaned, leaving a jewelry shop, "What's the point of boasting 'all you need in this store' when they don't have that pendant in red?!"

"Were the alternatives not acceptable?" Aldarn asked, careful not to anger him even further.

"No! And never acceptable!" Lord Cedric hissed, stomping away. "It's either I find that specific pendant in red, or I find something better. That IS the only alternative I will accept!"

Aldarn followed. "Yes, yes, the only acceptable alternative..."

"Well, how about you, rebel? Have you found anything for your oh-so-dearest rebel leader?"

"Not really..."

Lord Cedric grunted, smirking at him. Aldarn only sighed. He knew that if he said 'yes', the naga would only curse him to the darkest caves of Helhim.

Even so, Aldarn hadn't found a gift for his beloved.

Earlier, the two had braved through the crowded supermarket and grabbed holiday snacks and drinks - cocoa powder, peppermint tea bags, pandoros and panetonnes, and so much more. Aldarn felt happy with this purchase, but Lord Cedric mentioned a special gift he had to get from some jewelry shop. Aldarn groaned inwardly, but if getting a present meant those shiny, sparkly eyes smiling back at him, he'd ransack each and every store for an appropriate item, just as Yule tradition said.

He hadn't bothered to give Caleb anything in the past Yuletides; Caleb hadn't either. It wasn't necessary, and it wasn't like they could afford celebrating it that way, not with their busy jobs and schedules.

This time, it would be different. This time, Aldarn scraped up money (Earthling money) to buy a gift (an Earthling one).

However, Aldarn hadn't seen anything appropriate. New clothes? Ornamental swords? The specialized mugs? Some knick-knack to put around in the house and gather dust? The intricate mechanisms Aldarn couldn't understand?

Definitely not jewelry. Caleb wasn't that fascinated with metal works if they weren't swords or weapons.

As Lord Cedric entered yet another jewelry store, Aldarn thought about Caleb's coat. On one hand, that needed replacement. It was very old and went through mending way too many times; the repair stitches rather very blatant. On the other, it was Caleb's favorite piece of clothing, a hand-me-down from his father. It was basically irreplaceable.

Aldarn frowned. He observed his surroundings and the nearby stores. There had to be something...!

"YES!" Lord Cedric skipped out of the jeweler's with a gorgeous rose pendant in hand, and Aldarn lost his line of thought (if it was there, anyway). "Here it is, the most beautiful rose in gold and rubies for the most beautiful rose of my life!"

Aldarn smiled at him. "Congratulations."

"Well, what about you?" Lord Cedric placed the pendant into a simple black box with utmost care. "Have you found anything for your beau?"

"Not really, I'm afraid."

"Huh. Is your beau truly that picky?"

"No. I'm the picky one."

Lord Cedric crossed his arms. "Well, hurry up."

"I know. I'm trying." Very upsetting to know everything about your lover and yet know not what to give him for Yuletide.

"Well, what could a little rebel like him want? A new sword? Some brand new footwear? Maybe a coat, or... a scarf?"

A scarf, perhaps? Aldarn smiled.

"...I assume you have your answer."

"I do. Thank you, Lord Cedric."

And off to the department store they went. Lord Cedric busied himself daydreaming about the red outfits and his own beloved, while Aldarn rummaged for an appropriate scarf. It had to be of a very specific color and a very specific material in his mind.

Green. It had to be green. Green. It compliments Caleb very well. Green, like the grass he loved to run over. Green, like the fresh leaves of dawn. Green, like Caleb's recluse alraune ancestors.

Aldarn inspected every green scarf he could find. He must've touched at least a dozen's worth of dozens! Every now and then, he'd gaze in the distance to see if Lord Cedric had come to pick him up and drag him home. But what could he do? The color had to be a little simpler, not too loud but not boring, and the texture wasn't just right!

The material had to be a little more like leather, tough but comfortable, not too rough but not soft. A durable material to last through a few years' worth of winters, a fashionable material to give Caleb enough warmth.

A few moments later, Lord Cedric emerged from a pile of scarves.

"Look at what I found!" he exclaimed, holding out a white scarf with pink silhouettes of cats. Orube would love this!"

Aldarn gave a polite smile. He himself hadn't found his gift, and here Lord Cedric found yet another one. No, it's not about the quantity; it was the fact that Aldarn could not find anything. How he wished he could go back to Meridian for a moment and make a special, rushed order to the nearest arachnope seamstress or tailor.

But what he had on hand were a few Earthling coins and those things they call bills, and it was too late to back out, not when Lord Cedric was affected by the festive fever (no matter how much he'd say he hated it).

Aldarn sighed. He made a little prayer to Imdahl and continued the hunt.

Imdahl seemed to have heard him.

As the bummed galhot followed Cedric into yet another selection of scarves, Aldarn held his hand out and his fingers brushed against leather-like texture. Aldarn turned his head and found a rather simple green scarf in his hand.

His lips curved into a wide, wide smile.

He pinched the material between his fingers. It certainly wasn't leather, but it felt like leather - wonders of the Earthling technology, Aldarn mused. The green was a little darker than the green stripes on Caleb's body, and it was accented with yellow threads woven in between.

This. This was the scarf for Caleb.

It didn't take Aldarn too long to rejoin Lord Cedric, who went ahead and fell into the paying line. The naga was in a good mood as he found a pair of scarves for the winter, one for his love with the pink cats, and one for himself with the sky blue snakes, and thus allowed Aldarn to line behind him (much to the displeasure of the lady who previously held that spot, but Aldarn did not wish to stay here for longer).

Aldarn wore a goofy little grin as he followed Lord Cedric out the mall. Time to hide the scarf until the Earthling's Yule Eve would come around.


End file.
